Iowa Capitol satanic idol vandal sentenced to probation in plea deal that drops hate crime
A former congressional candidate from Mississippi who pleaded guilty to damaging a holiday season display placed in the Iowa Capitol by the Satanic Temple of Iowa has been sentenced to probation, in line with a plea agreement.
Michael Cassidy, 36, admitted to travelling to Iowa in December from his home in the eastern Mississippi town of Lauderdale and tearing down the display's idol of the pagan deity Baphomet, erected under rules permitting religious groups to reserve display space in the Capitol. As part of a plea agreement, prosecutors dropped a charge under Iowa's hate crime law that would have made the crime a felony.
Cassidy filed a written guilty plea and requested immediate sentencing, and on Friday, Judge Celene Gogerty granted him a deferred judgement on the remaining charge of criminal mischief, a misdemeanor that will be dismissed if he successfully completes two years of probation. He also must pay an $855 civil penalty and restitution to the Satanic Temple.
From December: Iowa lawmaker calls for Gov. Kim Reynolds to remove Satanic Temple's display from Capitol
In statements Friday, Cassidy's lawyer touted the dismissal of the hate crime charge and suggested her client had been targeted because of his religion, while a Polk County Attorney's Office spokesperson said prosecutors continued to believe the hate crime charge was applicable but agreed to let Cassidy plead to the misdemeanor in consideration of his lack of criminal record and other factors.
The display in the Capitol was one of several with religious themes permitted during the holidays under what one state representative said was the First Amendment principle that the state must "allow all displays or none."
William Morris covers courts for the Des Moines Register. He can be contacted at [email protected] or 715-573-8166.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa Capitol Satanic Temple display vandal sentenced to probation